12/23/05 The Pre-Christmas Black Chronicle of 2005

Appalled by the frequent and unpunished killing of animals, Animals Friends continues to appeal to the Croatian media and public to engage in lobbying for a change of legislation and punishment of those who commit crimes against animals

November 7, 2005, Kastav: Cats torturedIn Kastav nearby Rijeka, a citizen noticed that her cat came home with its tail squashed, after which it died, while another cat died with its belly squashed, her entrails protruding through her anus. Two burned cats were found on a parking lot, while a crucified cat was found in a derelict storehouse in the town centre. It is suspected that the torturers and murderers of animals are adolescents.

November 20, 2005, Zagreb: Dog thrown down from the fourth floor The torturer who had left his dog tied to a bench in June this year, now threw his bitch from the fourth floor in his apartment in Srednjaci. The horrified witnesses reported to the police, but the dog could not be helped and died after 20 minutes of terrible agony. Associations SUZA and Animals Friends have pressed charges against Kreso Grgic for murdering his dog.

November 19-20, 2005, Zagreb: 30 cats poisonedDuring the same weekend, 30 cats were poisoned in Zagreb. It was the total number of cats which had been taken care of by the former copy-shop manager in an abandoned pavilion of the Zagreb Fair.

November 22, 2005, Pula: Dog hanged by unknown sadist Nearby the Vidikovac primary school in Pula, pupils have discovered a hanged dog. Citizens have been frequently finding hanged dogs and cats in the Sijanska forest. Association Snoopy has offered, together with a number of citizens from all parts of Croatia, a 5,700 kuna reward to anyone who can supply credible information on the criminal’s identity, while associations SUZA and Animals Friends have pressed charges against the unknown sadist.

November 26, 2005, Garesnica: Cats poisoned Recently, several house cats belonging to the citizens of Garesnica have disappeared, some of them returning home in agony with obvious signs of poisoning. Several house dogs have also died from poison, while the cat of Flajpan family was poisoned with a strangely smelling powder, which was sent to analysis. The cat survived after intense veterinary care, during which it was discovered that it also had a bullet wound, meaning that someone had also shot at it. The citizens of Garesnica are convinced that the criminal lives in their neighbourhood.

December 2, 2005, Zagreb: Dog dragged by car until bled to death Unidentified persons tied a rope to the lower jaw of a young dog and dragged him along the road tied to a car until he died, after which they left the body in the middle of Avenija Dubrovnik in Zagreb. The wounded and bloody carcass was found by a driver, who notified the association for animal welfare Futura. It has been established (it was found that) that the dog was at most two years old and that it was not a stray dog.

December 5, 2005, Velika Gorica: Dog killer shoots puppy A dog killer well-known by the citizens of Velika Kosnica nearby Velika Gorica as a mentally ill person, shot the six months old mongrel Sara with a shotgun nearby a children's playground. Citizens suspect that he is responsible for the disappearance of at least ten dogs in the past few months, since he has been threatening for some time that he would kill all dogs in the town. It is feared that he could also start killing people.

December 16, 2005, Vrbovec: Veterinary inspector ordered killing of dogs Veterinary inspector Stjepan Cukulin from Vrbovec personally ordered a citizen from the village of Zabnica, who owns a gun, to shoot two vaccinated dogs while their owner Drago Marijan was not at home. The inspector explained this illegal and unprofessional act by saying that he suspected that the dogs might have been rabid, given the fact that a rabid fox had been found in the same yard, and that they needed to be 'euthanized'. Thus he violated the Animal Welfare Act, while his decision to have the dogs buried on the spot may have allowed further spread of rabies. The owner of the two dogs excavated the bodies and sent them to autopsy, which established that they were not rabid. However, the villagers, convinced by the act of inspector Cukulin that there was actual danger of rabies in Zabnica, began to kill their house animals in the most brutal ways, shooting and clubbing them. Inspector Cukulin has ordered four more dogs to be killed in the same way and continues to do so.

December 17, 2005, Zagreb: Children smashed heads of six-months old kittensTwo six-months old kittens were brutally killed in Dubrava, a district of Zagreb, most probably by trampling on their heads, since other parts of their bodies were intact. The Beslaj family, who was taking care of the kittens, suspect that they were murdered by children of their next-door neighbors, that are infamous for torturing and killing animals. The police found that the cats were intentionally killed and promised to send a team for adolescent delinquency in order to interrogate the youngsters and their parents.

Due to an increase of the number of cases of animal torturing and murdering, of which almost none is reported or punished, we demand urgent modifications in the legislation, with the cooperation of all relevant individuals and institutions in solving this serious problem. We are of the opinion that Croatia needs a new Animal Welfare Act, which will determine high fines for torturing and killing animals, including the mandatory seizure of the animal and the prohibition of acquiring new ones. We appeal to the citizens to report all cases of animal abuse to the veterinary inspection. Those cases, in which the animal's health or life are in immediate danger, the case should be reported directly to the police.

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Animal Friends is a non-profit, non-governmental organization, founded in 2001 with the aim to promote animal protection and animal rights as well as veganism, as ethical, ecological and healthy lifestyle.
Animal Friends Croatia is a member organization of EVU,
Eurogroup for Animals, ECEAE, FFA, IAFC and OIPA.